By Susan Miele

Jul. 11, 2018: On the heels of the opening of Root & Vine Juice Bar comes Playa Bowls Bronxville, a similar dining establishment offering bowls, juices, and smoothies. The shop assumed the storefront previously occupied by Candyland.

Close to thirty Playa Bowls locations have opened up and down the East Coast, with its roots on the Jersey Shore. The brainchild of serious surfers Abby Taylor and Rob Giuliani, Playa Bowls brings to the residents of suburbia the nourishment they frequently enjoyed in their travels to Costa Rica, Panama, and other locales where they got hooked on blended bowls using acai and pitaya fruits. The Bronxville outpost represents Playa Bowls's second foray into Westchester, the first store having opened in Pleasantville about seven months ago.

Both acai bowls and pitaya bowls are offered with various fruit and granola toppings, along with less common ingredients like goji berries, vanilla protein, and coconut shavings. There are also green bowls using kale, banana, pineapple, and coconut milk as a base for creativity; coconut bowls featuring raw coconut, banana, agave, and coconut milk plus assorted toppings; and banana bowls, which start with banana, honey, and almond milk. Additionally, oatmeal bowls, made from steel-cut organic oatmeal, allow for assorted toppings as well, including peanut butter, Nutella, raw cacao nibs, and figs, to name a few. Additional toppings can be added to any bowl for a dollar each, making the bowl permutations considerable.

Indeed, summer specials are on the chalkboard, including the "Summer Boost" blends banana with peanut butter and cashew milk, with toppings of fruit, almond butter, and bee pollen.

Seven juices are on the menu, including "Mermaid Fuel" (kale, pineapple, apple, and mint), and eleven choices of smoothies include traditional combinations like strawberry banana and more inventive varieties like "The Dang," which features banana, wheat-grass powder, peanut butter, cinnamon, and almond milk, and "Matcha," made from matcha green tea, banana, pineapple, and coconut milk.

Ready for dessert? Chia pudding bowls are sweetened with agave and come in five varieties. Among these are the "Trailblazer," with granola, chocolate protein, banana, raw cacao, and peanut butter as toppings, and "Oh Mega," topped with banana, blueberry, hemp seeds, and agave nectar.

Bowls range in price from $8 to $11; juices (available in three sizes) range from $5.99 to $7.99; and smoothies (available in two sizes) cost $6.99 and $7.99. Committed to eco-friendliness, the shop avoids the use of plastic, instead relying on plant-based bowls, straws, cups, and spoons.

Hours are 8:00 am to 9:00 pm daily. Online orders are accepted. There is limited seating available.

Playa Bowls Bronxville
15 Park Place
914-652-7181
http://playabowls.com/
Instagram: @playabowlsbronxville

Photo at top by N. Bower; photos in text by S. Miele